During formalization hearings for the Belarus plot, defenses highlighted serious flaws in the Public Prosecutor's investigation, prompting Judge Michelle Ibacache to warn that they must address each allegation. The prosecution ordered urgent inquiries to gather new statements. Both defenses and the State Defense Council seek testimonies from 13 Supreme Court justices involved in key rulings.
The formalization of Gonzalo Migueles, Mario Vargas, and Eduardo Lagos in the so-called Belarus plot spanned four days at the Seventh Guarantee Court in Puerto Montt. The first hearings, on Friday, November 7, and Saturday, November 8, were led by the Public Prosecutor's Office, headed by regional prosecutor Carmen Gloria Wittwer and prosecutor Marco Muñoz, who charged the accused as perpetrators of bribery, graft, and money laundering. They alleged coordination with former minister Ángela Vivanco for the Third Chamber of the Supreme Court to rule favorably on appeals by Consorcio Belaz Movitec (CBM) against Codelco.
On Monday, November 10, and Tuesday, November 11, the defenses struck back. Vargas's lawyers, Sergio Contreras and Conall Morrison, argued that geolocation does not prove coordination, as Vargas and Vivanco were never captured by the same communications antenna. Cristián Cáceres and Luis Andrés, Lagos's defenders, criticized the investigation for being full of conjectures and inconclusive evidence, with Carabineros reports mentioning 'it cannot be ruled out' scenarios. They highlighted a note in the detention request: 'Ojo, lo que figura en recuadro en adelante en letra color azul está señalado en el informe, pero no consta aún que se haya verificado'. Andrés stated: 'We have all worked under pressure and made mistakes, but here it was rushed (...) Something or someone ordered this investigation, which had a pace, to hurry up'.
They also questioned that a key meeting at Vivanco's home on August 8, 2023, was a celebration, not to draft a resource, as the prosecution claimed. Judge Ibacache intervened: 'I warn the plaintiffs and the Public Prosecutor's Office that they will have to address each of the allegations made by the defenses. The truth is that at this moment we are facing a quite serious situation and I hope that the Public Prosecutor's investigation can clarify everything the defenses are pointing out to me'.
In response, the prosecution ordered the OS7 to take seven urgent statements on Monday, November 10: two office building workers (José Acevedo and Luis Fuentes), three at Vivanco's building, her former driver Juan Carlos Lizana (who took her to the Danubio Azul restaurant), and the cocktail organizer at Vivanco's home. These would be used in replies, though defenses plan to contest them.
A key gap is the lack of statements from Third Chamber ministers who ruled with Vivanco. Sergio Contreras criticized: 'In one year and two months of investigation, the Public Prosecutor's Office has a gap in its inquiry. It has not taken statements from the ministers who made up the chamber'. The State Defense Council (CDE) is also considering summoning 13 justices and lawyers: Cristina Gajardo, Mario Carroza, Leonor Etcheberry, María Angélica Benavides, Sergio Muñoz, Adelita Ravanales, Pedro Águila, Diego Simpertigue, Ricardo Enrique Alcalde, María Teresa Letelier, Diego Munita, Eliana Quezada, and Andrea Ruiz. Only relator statements from Vivanco's removal file are available.
The College of Lawyers condemned the events as 'grave' and initiated disciplinary inquiries against Vargas and Yamil Najle, accused of aiding in laundering $45 million.